Merchandise cabinet



y 1, 1952 H. H. NEWMAN 2,602,015

MERCHANDISE CABINET Filed Sept. 14, 1949 IN VEN TOR 3y i/a raid 15f Mal/nan Patented July 1, 19 52 UNITED STATES PATENT" or ice Application September 14, 1949, Serial No. 115,718 1 Claim. (Cl. 312-138) My present invention relates to cabinets for the display and dispensing of merchandise, and aims to provide certain improvements therein. More particularly it relates to such cabinets which are adapted for self-service or attendant service, as desired.

In most theatre and in many hotel lobbies, as well as in many restaurants, cafeterias and food markets, display and dispensing cabinets are stationed at which confectionery or other food products may be closely viewed by purchasers and quickly dispensed by an attendant, when ordered. Many of these cabinets are of the self-service type so that a customer may help himself and pay for the merchandise thus taken, either to an attendant stationed behind or adjacent the cabinet or to a cashier at some remote point, as in a cafeteria. Under certain conditions, for example, in the lobby of a theatre just before show time or when passers-by are numerous, to prevent loss by pilfering it becomes prudent to have such cabinets wholly attendant served and to preclude direct access to the merchandise by the purchasers. Also, in cases where the law requires that the food products be covered-it is desirable to have such cabinets normally closed both at the front and rear and serviced by an attendant at the rear of the cabinet.

It is accordingly an object of my invention to provide a display and dispensing cabinetso designed and constructed as to function either as a self-service or attendant serviced unit. A further object is to provide a cabinet of the type specified, which can be converted in a matter of seconds, with but little effort, from a self-service type to an attendant serviced type. A further object is to provide such cabinet wherein the display of the merchandise is not lessened by reason of the conversion from the self-service to the attendant serviced form. A further object is to provide a cabinet of the character set forth which will be suitable for the sale and dispensing of confectionery and food products which must berefrigerated to maintain their freshness in both appearance and quality. Still another object is to provide such cabinet which will be pleasing in appearance and simple and compact in construction.

The foregoing and other objects of my invention not specifically enumerated I accomplish by providing a cabinet having the display compartment thereof provided with protective transparent front and top sections which are hingedly connected together and adapted, when the transparent top section is moved about its hinge, to lie in a common plane with the front transparent section that the protective sections can be moved downwardly-as a unit out of view to render the merchandise displayed accessible from in front of the cabinet. The cabinet is preferably also provided with a multiple sectioned, hingedly connected reartopportion which is adapted tobe opened about the hinged connections to liein par..

- allel relation to the rear Wall of the compartment wholly within the contour of the cabinet. The

cabinet is alsoprovided with novel means for conducting and circulating refrigerated air to the merchandise on display. The invention will be better understood from the detailed description which follows when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings illustrating a pre ferred embodiment, and wherein:

Figure 1 shows a front elevation of a cabinet embodying my invention, the protective transparent front and top sections of the cabinet being closed.

Fig. 2 shows a transverse section of the cabinet of Fig. 1 taken substantially along the plane of the line 22 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 shows a transverse section of the cabinet of Fig. 1 taken substantially along the plane of the-line 33 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, in the various fig ur'es of which the samereference numerals are employed to designate corresponding parts, the cabinet of my invention may be said to comprise a front wall It, a rear wall H, a top wall [2 and side walls l3, the cabinetbeing divided primarily into a display and dispensing compartment I4 and a refrigerating compartment IS.

The displaycompartment M as herein shown has an inclined bottom wall It extending from the front wall to the rear wall, said bottom wall having openings ll therethrough, for a purpose which will presently appear. Mounted on the inclined bottom wall 56 are a plurality of horizontally disposed shelves l8 which preferably extend the complete width of the cabinet and are each provided with a front guard wall [9, preferably of glass, or other transparent material, so that merchandise supportedon the shelves will be visible from both the front and top of the cabinet. Preferably the shelves l8 are formed of forv aminous material, for a purpose which will presently appear. The display and dispensing compartment l4 has a displaceable transparent protective front wall 20 and a displaceable transpar ent protective top wall 2|, the said walls 2Ei.and 2| being hingedly connected along their adjacent ends preferably by a piano hinge 22. Where said walls are formed of glass it will be apparent that the edges of the glass may be protected with metal channel members 23, in a manner well known in the art, and the piano hinge; mounted on such metal channel members. The side walls [3 adjacent the front of the cabinet are provided with guide rails 24 which extend the full height of the cabinet and serve as guides along which parent vwall zll and is adapted to be supported in 

